1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure is directed to a handbrake for a railway vehicle that includes a double-sided gear box that facilitates operation from either of the lateral sides of the car body and, further, to a handbrake for a railway vehicle that has a double-sided gear box having a design that compensates for eccentricity of the handbrake drive shaft while maintaining proper gear train spacing.
2. Description of Related Art
Railway vehicle handbrake mechanisms are well-known in the art. A conventional handbrake mechanism is disposed on the railroad vehicle and includes a rotatable hand wheel mounted on a shaft which, through a gear train, rotates a chain drum. Rotation of the chain drum winds up a chain that is secured to the brake rigging of the railroad car. The brakes are applied as the hand wheel is rotated in a first direction. Rotation of the hand wheel in a second direction opposite to the first direction is prevented by a mechanism which engages the hand wheel shaft. By disengaging the mechanism, the brakes can be released.
Existing handbrake designs with a double sided gear box are associated with a number of disadvantages. Internal gear components within the handbrake assembly must be aligned to allow for proper gear meshing and prevent binding of the gears. Typically, the internal gear components are adjusted during manufacture to ensure the proper gear meshing. After the initial adjustment, having no feasible method of in-field adjustments to prevent misalignment of the gear components, often results in handbrake failure. Certain handbrake mechanisms have a bearing cup welded to the handbrake back plate to position the intermediate pinion shaft in relation to the handbrake drive shaft to prevent relative misalignment. However, manufacturing tolerances in the drive shaft machining can create an eccentric path of the mating pinion gear. The fixed location of the intermediate pinion shaft in combination with an eccentric gear path often leads to gear train binding.